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Ruby Bridges: A Talk with My Teacher

Ruby Bridges: A Talk with My Teacher

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Author(s)

Ruby Bridges

Co-Authors / Illustrators

Trudy Tran

Publisher

Orchard Books

Genre(s)

Age Range

Release Date

January 07, 2025

ISBN

978-1338753943

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Acclaimed civil rights icon, Ruby Bridges, shares the touching tale of reuniting with the first-grade teacher who changed her life, Mrs. Henry.

Once again, you have shown me that you never get too old to learn. Teaching really is the noblest of professions.

When Ruby Bridges was only six years old, she made history by being the first Black child to integrate William Frantz Elementary School. She became best friends with her teacher, Mrs. Henry. Excited to come back for her second year, Ruby is soon devastated to learn that Mrs. Henry isn’t her second-grade teacher. Where did Mrs. Henry go? Can Ruby ever reconnect with her favorite teacher?

A love letter to teachers who hold the power to change lives, Ruby Bridges: A Talk with My Teacher illuminates the lasting impact that the best of teachers can have on the lives of their students. Trudy Tran's emotive rendering of Ruby Bridges from childhood to adulthood brings new life to this heartwarming story of a reunion between two long lost best friends.

Editor review

1 review

Ruby Bridges: Past and Present

February 21, 2025 (Updated: June 03, 2026)

Overall rating

5.0

Writing Style

5.0

Illustrations/Photos (if applicable)

5.0

Learning Value

5.0

“Ruby Bridges: A Talk with My Teacher” by Ruby Bridges, illustrated by Trudy Tran, follows the original story of Ruby Bridges integrating her school, but picks up one year later, when she is looking forward to her first day of second grade. Even though she’s expecting to see Mrs. Henry, her first grade teacher who was so kind to her during what was never an easy integration process, she finds that she has a different teacher. While it seems life may be easier this year since there isn’t yelling and screaming at her as she walks in and the kids all seem somewhat friendly, it shakes her comfort level that she won’t be with the woman who treated her so kindly during such a terrible time.

The book then moves to 35 years later, when Ruby is all grown up and there is a book published about her experiences back when she was in elementary school. She desperately wants to connect with Mrs. Henry again, and lo and behold, she finds herself able to do so. When they meet again, Ruby is just as excited as she was on her first day of second grade when she found that Mrs. Henry wasn’t going to be her teacher again. They share pieces of their lives since they last saw each other several decades ago.

The story very nicely puts the focus on teachers and the impact that they have on individual students. Without Mrs. Henry being there for Ruby’s first grade year, there is no way to know what would have happened during the integration process and how Ruby would have fared from that point forward. The back matter of the book also includes a teacher glossary about other powerful, impactful teachers who educated people in a variety of ways. Some of these people include Maya Angelou, Frederick Douglass, Maria Montessori, Eleanor Roosevelt, Anne Sullivan, Booker T. Washington, and others. May all children have at least one teacher who speaks to them the way that Mrs. Henry spoke to Ruby Bridges.

Good Points

The story very nicely puts the focus on teachers and the impact that they have on individual students.

The back matter of the book also includes a teacher glossary about other powerful, impactful teachers who educated people in a variety of ways. Some of these people include Maya Angelou, Frederick Douglass, Maria Montessori, Eleanor Roosevelt, Anne Sullivan, Booker T. Washington, and others. May all children have at least one teacher who speaks to them the way that Mrs. Henry spoke to Ruby Bridges.